New entry system bars back-door deals: Parents

New entry system bars back-door deals: Parents

Leony Aurora, Jakarta

The new online system for admission to state senior high schools
and vocational schools, implemented for the first time in
Jakarta, provides no opening for backdoor negotiations or the use
of special recommendations, parents say.

A mother of a junior high school graduate told The Jakarta
Post on Monday, the third and last day of admission, that she had
tried to "negotiate" with the principal of SMA 6 but to no avail.

"I submitted the admission forms today because my daughter
only wants to go to SMA 6," she said at the school's premises. "I
told her that her grades were not good enough, but she would not
listen to me. Last night she almost ran away from home," she
added in dismay.

Students are ranked based on their aggregate score in the
national exams -- in Mathematics, English and Bahasa Indonesia.
The daughter's score was slightly above 18, while the lowest
score needed to gain admission to SMA 6 was 21.27.

In the admission system this year, students can list five
preferred schools and a computer program at the Jakarta junior
and senior high school education agency will rank them and find
schools to match their academic performance and preference.

An employee at SMA 6, who declined to be identified, gave two
thumbs up for the new system.

"I have been here since 1969, I know how backdoor deals are
done," he said. "I used to 'help' some students to gain entry,
then Kanwil (the city's national education agency) took over the
process and the deals went on there.

"But this time, nobody outside the system can get in, not even
if they're the children of generals," he added.

Up until 6:30 p.m. on Monday, some 65,023 forms had been
entered into the agency's computer program, with 43,096 of them
for senior high schools and 21,927 others for vocational schools.

The figures include 3,766 junior high graduates from outside
the capital applying for senior high schools and 1,652 for
vocational schools.

On the last day, schools were quiet except for a handful of
parents roaming around.

"I've been to an Internet kiosk near my house to check my
son's position," said Jafuri, a resident of Ciputat, South
Jakarta. "But it's better to check directly at the school," he
added, as he sat waiting for the clock to hit 4 p.m., when
admissions were officially closed.

The final result will be announced on Tuesday at 8 a.m. at
schools and on the agency's website. Students must enroll at
their respective schools during the registration period, from
July 13 to July 15.

The agency will hold a second admission period from July 16 to
July 17 to fill any remaining spaces.

There are 31,669 seats in state senior high schools and 14,562
seats in vocational ones. Some 118,948 junior high school
students graduated this year.

The total number of seats available in state and private
senior and vocational high schools are 186,146, far exceeding the
demand.